Syrian President Receives Message from Jordan’s king on Middle East Tension

Published October 9th, 2000 - 03:00 GMT

Jordanian Foreign Minister, Abdel-Ilah al-Khatib, left for Damascus with a message for Syrian President, Bashar Assad, from King Abdullah II on the te

Jordanian Foreign Minister, Abdel-Ilah al-Khatib, on Monday left for Damascus with a message for Syrian President, Bashar Assad, from King Abdullah II on the tension gripping the region.

"I am carrying a message from King Abdullah to the Syrian president on the latest developments in the Middle East and the efforts underway to put an end to the violence and the tension in this part of the world," Khatib told AFP before leaving for Syria.

"Jordan is very worried by the rising tension in the region and is trying to put an end to it," said Khatib who is accompanied on the trip by Royal Cabinet Chief Fayez Tarawneh.

"We are concerned with protecting the peace, which is the option chosen by all the parties," Khatib said.

His previously unannounced visit comes 48 hours after Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak held Syria responsible for the spread of violence from the Palestinian territories to the Lebanon-Israel border - AMMAN (AFP)